The past few days my kids have been out of school for Fall Break. Last Thursday, on the first day of their break, we took a trip to the zoo.

While we were there my son began complaining about a sore throat and headache. By the time we got home, he headed straight for his pajamas and bed.

Uggh.

What a great way to spend a holiday weekend. Not. His sore throat soon turned into congestion and a cough.

Since I’ve been making it this weekend, I thought I’d share one of my favorite home remedies for sore throat and cough.

For my family, there are few things more soothing or effective than a simple Lemon Honey Tea.

To make a cup, I squeeze the juice of about 1/4 to 1/3 of a lemon for the kids or 1/2 a lemon for my husband and me in to a cup of hot water and add enough honey for sweetness. Obviously, for my kids, I make sure it’s not too hot when I serve it.

I think it works wonders to calm a cough and make it more productive. It warms us up and soothes a sore throat and chest. Even the smell of the tea make me feel better when I’m sick.

I don’t really care if it’s a placebo effect or if there a good scientific reason why this remedy works so well. I just love when a simple, healthy thing is what really works best.

I love being able to give my family something that says “I love you” and does not come off a retail shelf. Other than antibotics, many OTC remedies are placebos and not that effective. Not to mention that they are also costly and in this economy unaffordable for many consumers. These home remedies have been used for years and in my opinion are more reliable and trustworthy. Thanks for sharing!

We use this, too- and the kids love it! They ask for it when they start feeling scratchy throats. Lemon and honey both have healing properties, so definitely not a placebo…just good, wholesome medicine! :)

I love lemon-honey tea! It reminds me so much of being a kid. My mom would always make it for us whenever we got a cold. This year I’ve been playing around with it a bit because my husband and two boys had terrible colds all at the same time (lucky us!). I used a little fresh mint and steeped it in simmering water for a few minutes and then added the lemon juice and honey. The mint gave it a nice little kick.

My Mum always made this for us – we call it ‘hot lemon and honey’ (so original), and it’s my go-to remedy as soon as there is a sniffle or scratchy throat. Sometimes I put fresh or powdered ginger in for an extra kick and circulation booster.
Jenn

I use this also and love how it makes us all feel better. I also found when my daughter had a very bad cough that I used 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar mixed with 1/2 tsp honey. It worked wonderful to get rid of her cough.

My Grandpap used to make this for us when we were kids. The grownups always had a cup of coffee after dinner and he made this for us kids as our hot drink. I make it for myself when I’m feeling a little low. For some reason it never occurred to me to use it for sore throats…but I’m ready to try it now!

Hi Calli- We did something similar when the girls were little and actually would use a tall tupperware tumbler with a sippy lid and leave it on their nightstand at bedtime. If they woke up coughing they would get a drink. It made us all feel better!

Our pediatrician–20 years ago–told me to mix equal parts lemon juice and honey and use that for cough medicine for our kids. They loved being able to take it when they needed it, instead of the “every 4 hours” OTC stuff. (Of course they have be be older to use honey–not for kids 1 and under)

I use all the time when I have a bad throat, when it first starts I also add 2 teaspoons apple-cider vinegar because when you feel rubbish you don’t notice the smell or taste, but that also seems to help:)

Honey is a wonder ‘drug’ so will definitely work on sore throats. no placebo. it really works..
other then babies, kids & adults benefit from a teaspoon of honey when they have a sore throat. OR
cook one onion w/a cup of honey, after it boils a bit & the onion is softened, drain the honey off & use as cough syrup :-)
if sickness is going around. place slices of onion around your house :-) sounds odd. but it was proven years ago that the virus will go into the onion & not you . neat huh ? worth a try ?